Living Wittily

A Jewish Golden Wedding 75 years ago.

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I was in a charity shop and found this brass plaque. The inscription shows the initials of two people the dates 1887 – 1937. The relief in the centre is of Jacob and Rachel at the well. The surrounding reliefs are the story of Jacob's journey, his wooing Rachel and working for Laban. The two names are inscribed in Hebrew on the top left and right of the reliefs. My guess is this is a Golden wedding plaque, made in 1937, and featuring one of the greatest love stories in the Hebrew Bible.

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The quality of the central relief captures the moment of encounter, a beautiful portrayal of accidental providence, those unlooked for meetings when God is at work in the ordinariness of everyday. Except with Jacob, very little is ordinary. Below is one of the scenes from the outer reliefs. I love this plate – it will hang in my study, a piece of brazen exegesis 🙂


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Comments

15 responses to “A Jewish Golden Wedding 75 years ago.”

  1. Bob MacDonald avatar
    Bob MacDonald

    I wonder what the provenance of this is – 1937 being a difficult date in history for the Jews. Was any history supplied?

    Reply
  2. Bob MacDonald avatar
    Bob MacDonald

    I wonder what the provenance of this is – 1937 being a difficult date in history for the Jews. Was any history supplied?

    Reply
  3. Bob MacDonald avatar
    Bob MacDonald

    I wonder what the provenance of this is – 1937 being a difficult date in history for the Jews. Was any history supplied?

    Reply
  4. Jim Gordon avatar
    Jim Gordon

    Hello again Bob – the same thought ocurred to me. Indeed one or two have wondered what the story is that lies behind such an unusual, and to the two people, precious memento. It’s mainly brass so its value is human rather than commercial. Inverurie in the North East of Scotland is an unlikely provenance. Because I don’t have Hebrew I can’t read the inscription. I’ll photograph them close-up and email them to you and see what you make of them. But it is a poignant reminder of love, mortality and the significance of our individual stories within the larger narrative of God’s people.

    Reply
  5. Jim Gordon avatar
    Jim Gordon

    Hello again Bob – the same thought ocurred to me. Indeed one or two have wondered what the story is that lies behind such an unusual, and to the two people, precious memento. It’s mainly brass so its value is human rather than commercial. Inverurie in the North East of Scotland is an unlikely provenance. Because I don’t have Hebrew I can’t read the inscription. I’ll photograph them close-up and email them to you and see what you make of them. But it is a poignant reminder of love, mortality and the significance of our individual stories within the larger narrative of God’s people.

    Reply
  6. Jim Gordon avatar
    Jim Gordon

    Hello again Bob – the same thought ocurred to me. Indeed one or two have wondered what the story is that lies behind such an unusual, and to the two people, precious memento. It’s mainly brass so its value is human rather than commercial. Inverurie in the North East of Scotland is an unlikely provenance. Because I don’t have Hebrew I can’t read the inscription. I’ll photograph them close-up and email them to you and see what you make of them. But it is a poignant reminder of love, mortality and the significance of our individual stories within the larger narrative of God’s people.

    Reply
  7. Robert Parkinson avatar
    Robert Parkinson

    Hi Jim,
    This is a beautiful item. I would make a couple of observations that might revise your interpretation of it. I notice that the inscription beneath the central relief says Rebekah and Eliezer so I think the detail pictures Rebekah drawing water for Abraham’s servant rather than Jacob meeting Rachel. Also the names at the top read Jerusalem (on the left) and Bezalel (I think) on the right. I am not sure what to make of Bezalel. Is this the artificer of the Tabernacle or is it to be read as a string of words (in the shadow of God)? If it is to be read as the name, I wonder whether it relates simply to the fact that this is a fine vessel. Could it be an offering plate? The pictorial detail looks European to me but I am hardly an expert. Intriguing. I wonder if some of your Jewish friends could throw more light on it.

    Reply
  8. Robert Parkinson avatar
    Robert Parkinson

    Hi Jim,
    This is a beautiful item. I would make a couple of observations that might revise your interpretation of it. I notice that the inscription beneath the central relief says Rebekah and Eliezer so I think the detail pictures Rebekah drawing water for Abraham’s servant rather than Jacob meeting Rachel. Also the names at the top read Jerusalem (on the left) and Bezalel (I think) on the right. I am not sure what to make of Bezalel. Is this the artificer of the Tabernacle or is it to be read as a string of words (in the shadow of God)? If it is to be read as the name, I wonder whether it relates simply to the fact that this is a fine vessel. Could it be an offering plate? The pictorial detail looks European to me but I am hardly an expert. Intriguing. I wonder if some of your Jewish friends could throw more light on it.

    Reply
  9. Robert Parkinson avatar
    Robert Parkinson

    Hi Jim,
    This is a beautiful item. I would make a couple of observations that might revise your interpretation of it. I notice that the inscription beneath the central relief says Rebekah and Eliezer so I think the detail pictures Rebekah drawing water for Abraham’s servant rather than Jacob meeting Rachel. Also the names at the top read Jerusalem (on the left) and Bezalel (I think) on the right. I am not sure what to make of Bezalel. Is this the artificer of the Tabernacle or is it to be read as a string of words (in the shadow of God)? If it is to be read as the name, I wonder whether it relates simply to the fact that this is a fine vessel. Could it be an offering plate? The pictorial detail looks European to me but I am hardly an expert. Intriguing. I wonder if some of your Jewish friends could throw more light on it.

    Reply
  10. Jim Gordon avatar
    Jim Gordon

    Robert thanks for this clarification. I agree, having read the story of Rebekah, especially watering the camels, which is a prominent motif on the central panel. I am happy to have others offer their knowledge and insights and will revise the post once some contributions have come in. Definitely not Jacob and Rachel.
    Bezalel as the master craftsman of the Tabernacle has long been a favourite of mine for the person whose gifts and skills are on offer for the worship and service of God. I also like the idea of Jerusalem in the shadow of God. Happy to hear from others, but thank you very much Robert.

    Reply
  11. Jim Gordon avatar
    Jim Gordon

    Robert thanks for this clarification. I agree, having read the story of Rebekah, especially watering the camels, which is a prominent motif on the central panel. I am happy to have others offer their knowledge and insights and will revise the post once some contributions have come in. Definitely not Jacob and Rachel.
    Bezalel as the master craftsman of the Tabernacle has long been a favourite of mine for the person whose gifts and skills are on offer for the worship and service of God. I also like the idea of Jerusalem in the shadow of God. Happy to hear from others, but thank you very much Robert.

    Reply
  12. Jim Gordon avatar
    Jim Gordon

    Robert thanks for this clarification. I agree, having read the story of Rebekah, especially watering the camels, which is a prominent motif on the central panel. I am happy to have others offer their knowledge and insights and will revise the post once some contributions have come in. Definitely not Jacob and Rachel.
    Bezalel as the master craftsman of the Tabernacle has long been a favourite of mine for the person whose gifts and skills are on offer for the worship and service of God. I also like the idea of Jerusalem in the shadow of God. Happy to hear from others, but thank you very much Robert.

    Reply
  13. Robert Parkinson avatar
    Robert Parkinson

    It appears there is a Bezalel Academy of Art and Design in Jerusalem (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bezalel_Academy_of_Art_and_Design). I think this must be the source of your plate and would explain the inscriptions Bezalel and Jerusalem.

    Reply
  14. Robert Parkinson avatar
    Robert Parkinson

    It appears there is a Bezalel Academy of Art and Design in Jerusalem (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bezalel_Academy_of_Art_and_Design). I think this must be the source of your plate and would explain the inscriptions Bezalel and Jerusalem.

    Reply
  15. Robert Parkinson avatar
    Robert Parkinson

    It appears there is a Bezalel Academy of Art and Design in Jerusalem (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bezalel_Academy_of_Art_and_Design). I think this must be the source of your plate and would explain the inscriptions Bezalel and Jerusalem.

    Reply

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